Working at home with children: 10 tips from confined parents

Working at home is more like a struggle than dancing…

The boundaries between private and professional are even more blurred.

In 2020, telecommuting has become a reality for many…

And this trend is not about to go away.

After all, companies have realized that the work continues to be done. Why rent premises at exorbitant prices?

The good news?

Deliberate teleworking will allow you to continue working while being closer to your children …

Working at home with children: 10 tips from confined parents

Know exactly what you need to do

You have to know exactly what to do to take advantage of the spare time that is fragmented.

This advice applies also to those with procrastination issues: if the first thing to do is decide between everything that needs to be done, it’s no wonder you find yourself doing other, easier tasks. …

Like looking at emails and falling into other people’s priorities…

Or take a walk on social media and get stuck for far too long!

My recommendation?

In the evening, before disconnecting, list in your agenda the 3 priority tasks for the next day … and make sure to do them as early as possible in your day.

Make these 3 tasks move you forward on the 3 goals of the week to achieve.

You will be surprised to see what a simple idea, applied with regularity and seriousness, can bring in the result.

Organize your meetings on quiet/naps times

Organize your meetings on quiet times/naps of the kids to ensure the highest productivity efficiency in interactions with the outdoors.

It’s important to do the right things at the right time.

Timing is everything..

And that good time changes over time!

There are times in your day when you will have energy, other times when you will be distracted or tired.

Learn to observe yourself, observe those who share your workspace and find the rhythm.

For example, if you have to move forward on a project that is important to you, like writing a book, why not decide to get up before everyone else to write 30 or 60 minutes?

Put together, these minutes will allow you to move forward with regularity.

Develop the rules for teleworking together

Have a schedule, say it and explain it then stick to it..

However, this advice doesn’t apply to your 8-month-old toddler… but you get the idea!

It is important to take a moment to set up rules and to enforce them by showing it with your behaviors.

Keep some moments for yourself

Keep some moments to yourself..

… yoga, instruments, or pot with friends!

Normally, one of the negative effects of teleworking is isolation.

This pushes people to give up this way of working to find the open spaces so noisy. That is to say!

But with confinement, we are reaching new heights!

It’s important to realize that it’s even more important to find moments for yourself.

Then again,

Remember to take time for yourself. By taking care of yourself, you can be 100% available to others.

Work in “deep work” mode

It is important to have Deep Work sessions during his day.

A deep work session is a moment when you will succeed in immersing yourself in your work, a moment when you don’t see the time passing.

How to dive into a deep work session?

Have a task to complete (neither too easy nor too difficult)
Isolate yourself from distractions (have a dedicated room, noise-canceling headphones, notifications disabled)
Get to work for a predefined time (eg 25 minutes, or 60 minutes).

It is important to emphasize that in “deep work” mode you do a lot more work than someone who is constantly being disturbed.

It is possible to do 3 hours of deep work, which a poorly disciplined (or constantly disturbed) person can do in 8 hours of work.

What to do after a Deep work session?

A break!

Take short breaks

It is important to take breaks to go see his children.

… but even without having children, it is essential to take breaks.

The ideal duration varies according to the context, profession, and age.

If you follow the Pomodoro method, the idea is to work on a single task for 25 minutes, then take a break for 5 minutes, and repeat this 4 times to complete a full cycle.

What must you remember?

It’s important to take REAL breaks…

During these times, you can go see your children, go for a walk, do some physical exercises, or simply stroll.

Get help

No need to be at the head of a company or a team to learn to delegate..

And even if you don’t have family members who can help you out, there is always a way to get help from other friends who have kids at the same age.

What would you do with the time saved by not having to bring your kids to school every other week?

What would you do with the extra attention available if your neighbor could babysit a few hours each week?

Often it is enough to ask, but many do not dare.

To help you take the plunge, think of providing value… Give a reward to the people who help you!

Don’t seek perfection:

Perfectionism still has a bright future ahead of it. But what is perfectionism?

It is a disposition not to tolerate any imperfection…

So, it is important to realize that sometimes error is a matter of perception.

In other cases, the error allows you to move forward.

It is by making (non-fatal) mistakes that you can determine whether what you are doing is right or wrong.

Mistakes are good for those who know how to profit from them.

Concerning children, accept that it is not perfect: yes, we are working parents.

And we do our best with the children…

And above all, we do not control others, whether they are our children, our colleagues, or our neighbors.

We influence them, and that influence has limits!

Set up routines

Routines allow you to SHOW others what is important to you.

Routines create rhythm by creating a feeling of security! They are the rules discussed and implemented in reality.

In addition to helping the people you live with know if they can come and talk to you or not, it also makes it easier to get back into a proper state of focus.

Your routines should lie between the needs of your loved ones and your own needs.

So it requires observation, testing, a little research, a few moments of frustration, but once everyone is in sync, everyone is doing pretty well.

Keep in mind that routines change over time… they have to!

..they must be updated, adapted, and this is a characteristic of living together: the more you are, the more consensus is required.

Have your place dedicated to work

You must have, if possible, a dedicated place for work!

If a room is not available, a corner in the living room, perhaps with a carpet on the floor that demarcates the space, a place that all family members respect as specific to a person’s professional activity.

And if more than one family member is teleworking, ideally each has a place, even in a common room, but each has their own space.

Having a dedicated place is not synonymous with a dedicated room!

For example, you can acquire an adjustable table so that you can work standing up, some panels to surround it, and clearly delimit your work area.

Use noise-canceling headphones… and you’re good to go!

Your work bubble is created.

And even if your children are at school, creating a space like this is a good practice when working at home..